Last weekend, where there were several local 5ks I contemplated doing. With my work schedule, the Cherry Hill Library Book It 5k seemed to be the best choice. Plus, I use the Cherry Hill library, so it made even better. The night before, one of my friends posted a photo of the bib which was just numbers (no ads, no anything, just big bold numbers) and that sealed the deal.
I got to the race around 7:30, warmed up and by the time I knew it, it was time to start. The race began in an open field, similar to a cross-country race. I wasn’t quite expecting that. At the end of the field, I noticed there were a bunch of geese.
Anyone that knows me knows I’m petrified of geese, so I wasn’t excited for that. Secretly, I hoped the young kids would scare them away beforehand.
We were off. As we approached the end of the field, the faster runners cleared them away, and I was left with a nice clear path onto the cement. I would add at least a tenth of a mile with no shame to avoid geese.
By the first half of a mile, I found myself in fourth overall. My body didn’t feel great (why would, I just raced a half marathon the week before). I hit the first mile in 6:17 and found myself as the third person, about 15 seconds behind two young kids.
It felt as though I was slowly catching them, but it’s always hard to tell when you’re running. The course went through a series of turns, bends, and forks, but the policeman cyclist kept us going in the right direction. During the second mile, I passed both and began leading the race. That’s always a good feeling. I hit the second mile in 6:07. 
The third mile was a blur. I was running by myself, just trying to power to the finish line. I could feel some acid from the previous week, and I didn’t feel the greatest. I just wanted to get the race done, and it felt like it wasn’t getting any closer. We headed back towards the library and finished back onto the geeseless, open field (I’m not complaining). I crossed as the first place person in 18:59.8.
A nice .2 buffer right under 19. As someone who has lost a couple of swim races by .1 (including a mile), those .2 seconds felt spectacular.
So now my progression is:
8/20 Run the Runway 5k (20:54)
8/27 Philadelphia Airport 5k (19:45)
9/10 Flying Fish 5k (19:17)
9/23 Cherry Hill Book It 5k (18:59.8)
I know, of course, soon I will break the streak of continuing to progress smoothly in the 5k as nothing is linear but for today I’m happy with my progress as I continue to build back fitness.
Questions for you:
Are there any animals you’re terrified of?
For me, it’s both geese and turkeys.
Do you work on weekends?
Congratulations on your WIN!! So exciting! It has been so fun to watch your progression in the past couple months since you started running again. So proud of you for getting under 19!
Reptiles! In particular snakes but really most reptiles I want nothing to do with!!!
Congratulations on finishing first overall! Way to go on beating all the guys as well, and 2 seconds under 19 is amazing. I remember when all the race bibs were just numbers or “ROAD ID”, back when I started running 7 years ago. Now they are all flashy it seems.
I’m terrified of snakes and am also scared I may see a gator on my runs one day, but I never have (well, at least not anywhere near where I was running, have seen some across the ponds).